Thus what we have found in these examples of the portrayal of Abraham in Jewish literature is that Abraham functions as the prototype of one who rejects idolatry for faith in the one God and, in many cases, expresses that faith in obedience to the law. Even in the differing historical and political circumstances in which each of these texts was written, Abraham functioned to identify primary characteristics of the people of God. Abraham’s most outstanding characteristic was his monotheism, which